May 26, 2003	Monday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 23,1424

The present government,like many of its predecessors, looks to be lacking a clear vision as far as the policies regarding agriculture sector are concerned. On the one hand it is trying to appease farmers with short-term relief, while on the other it is pursuing policies that would eventually inflict more damage to the already teetering agrarian economy.

Soon after assuming the office of Prime Minister, Mir Zafrulla Jamali constituted two separate committees, to finalize the relief package promised by him, one for common countrymen and other for farmers. The decision was appreciated throughout the country. The provincial governments, particularly the Punjab government, also announced some packages for the agriculture sector. These measures revived the hope that problems faced by growers, small farmers in particular, would now be addressed.

But in his first address to the nation, delivered after a long wait of four months, Mr. Jamali stunned many by announcing that there would be no further land reforms, at least for a period PML-Q leads the country. The announcement might have pleased many big wigs of his ruling party and allies, but was enough to spread waves of disappointment and resentment among hundreds of thousands of landless families across the country.

On his recent tour of the central Punjab, Mr. Jamali made two important announcements. First, he announced a package to bail out the farmers who had to pay loans. Under this package, those owing up to Rs500,000 or less would get a waiver of 50 per cent while those whose outstanding debts was more than this ceiling will be required to pay 75 per cent of the due amount. Very next day, the PM announced 33 per cent cut on power tariff on tube wells for the Kharif season.

As for the first announcement, it would have been much better if the government could bring out comprehensive plan of revamping the whole agri credit mechanism, providing more access to small farmers. The impact of the second announcement will be limited to short term period of Kharif only. Moreover, the second most populous province of the country, Sindh would not benefit from it to a notable extent. Only a fraction of the total tube-wells operating in the country are there in Sindh.

There is another fear that this relief can prove to be even more short lived. Soon after the announcement of this subsidy, which will be shared equally by federal and provincial governments and Wapda. The World Bank has reportedly asked the government to withdraw this support immediately. Would the government be able to resist the mounting pressure from the IFIs? An affirmative answer to this question is a distant possibility.

There are sound reasons behind this pessimism. Such pressure has always played its part. Just a few weeks ago, this very government was forced to withhold the announcement of support price for some of the country’s prime cash crops. The support price for only wheat and cotton was announced while the growers of rice, sugarcane and other crops were left on their own. The strong opposition from the IMF and other IFIs, was also instrumental in the delay of a proposed reduction in general sales tax on fertilizers, which farmers are demanding since its imposition.

The premier argues that there is no need of any further land reforms. But the bare fact is that our rural landscape needs fair and just distribution of cultivatable land more than ever. Mr. Jamali himself knows that land reforms introduced by the rulers of past were not able to bring about any change in the social landscape of the country. The top few landlords and feudals, a mere 4-5 per cent of the total land owners, still hold more than half of the agricultural land.

The percentage of rural landless has increased over the years. In the province of Punjab, it has gone up from 27-49 per cent in 1990 to 55 per cent overall in 1998-99, while in Sindh it went up from 64 to 69 per cent in the same period. The spectre of poverty and uneven income distribution have spread significantly, over the years mainly because of these unfortunate facts. Is it not an irony that the premier of this country is advising the big landowners to increase the areas of cultivation without any fear of land reforms? Would it not increase rural poverty and injustice?

Experts believe that the saying ‘ no’ to land reforms shows the intentions of the rulers that they are bent upon facilitating corporate agriculture in Pakistan. Much has already been said about corporate agriculture farming (CAF) package, approved by the last cabinet. It was strongly opposed from all over Pakistan. To say the least, it would certainly undermine the interests and needs of millions of poor small farmers. There are reasons to believe that it can even put their food security at stake, let alone the thoughts of competition. Jamali’s announcement has set the line for future policy direction in this regard.

Can the impact of these small packages of relief be gauged in isolation from overall agricultural scenario prevailing in the country? Certainly not. Can the interests of vulnerable small farmers and all-powerful big jagirdars—-and going beyond that those of the merciless IFIs go side by side? Perhaps not. Policies aimed at short-term relief and populist decisions have never been of any help in the past. Such measures would not make any difference in the time to come either. The present rulers need to think carefully that what are the real problems and requirements of agriculture sector and farming community. Comprehensive strategies and plans should then be designed and implemented, for the real betterment of this all-important component of national economy.